Impact of extended operations objectives on professional service quality : An empirical investigation of customer-provider perspectives

Abstract

This research examines the perceptions of professional service providers and their customer counterparts, in a triangulated study made up of focus groups, a customized survey instrument (using a combined incident-attribute approach) and post-survey interviews. Two models are developed to examine identified gaps and areas of interest in service literature. The first model relates to differences in quality perceptions between customers and providers, and the second relates to the extreme outcomes of the service experience (either gross dissatisfaction or delight) as well as examining the impact of long-term customer-provider relationships on aspects of service quality. Hypotheses are developed in relation to the models, and are closely linked back to gaps in service quality knowledge. Support is found for most of the outcomes predicted by the hypotheses, although there are also some unexpected results. There is strong support that a gap exists between provider and customer perceptions of service quality, which can be explained by the presence of defensive bias and differences in job description. Unexpected findings supporting a customer emphasis on aspects of quality outside the service interaction itself can be explained by customer experience effects and the lack of discretion available to customer "hostages". Relationship length is observed to impact customer satisfaction, and highlights some differences between customers as beginners or partial experts. The findings of this study can be extended to all service areas and through interpretation and extrapolation they add value to service quality research in general. In particular, the development of the dimensions used in this research suggest that future service quality models should expand their focus from an emphasis on elements that make services different from manufacturing to include elements important to all businesses.